The Sherlockian world never sleeps, hence the growing length of these Weekly Links posts....

In the first half of March 2014, the great Starrettian scholar Peter Ruber passed away, the BSI Dinner 2014 group photo, Sherlockian.net added a dedicated fanfic section, Portsmouth announced a Sherlockian theme park in the works, Sherlock items on Etsy, the Beacon Society teams up with 221B Con, the domestic side of 221B Baker Street, an interview with MX Publishing's Steve Emecz, a list of essential Starrettian works, breaking news: BBC's Sherlock Holmes totally acts like a jerk sometimes, the Sisyphean task that is collecting Sherlock Holmes works, Snoopy as Sherlock, common Sherlock misconceptions in video, Doyle and the Olympics, a rare illustration uncovered, events galore and much more in the latest Weekly Sherlock Links Compendium by Matt Laffey.

[Baker Street Irregulars Dinner 2014 at the Yale Club - January 17, 2014. Picture by Gruber Photographers. Be sure to read my review of the BSI Weekend 2014 in the upcoming Spring 2014 issue of the Baker Street Journal - and if you don't subscribe, now is the time!]

Sherlockian.net announced a recent collaboration with Elinor Gray consisting of a new feature called "Fanfic List and Commentary". As a companion to the new fanfic page on Chris Redmond's perennially relevant Sherlock website, Ms Gray compiled an extensive database of Sherlockian-centric fanfic available for download as a spreadsheet titled Sherlock Fandom Classics which can be sorted by title, author or even by sub-fandom category. The list is made up of Gray's own preferences as well as those of her fandom comrades on Twitter, LiveJournal and Tumblr. (Click here to read some of Elinor Gray's own fanfiction.) For those new to the wide and wonderful world of Sherlock fanfic, a good starting point is AO3's "Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms" which contains 54,317 (and counting) fanworks all of which can be sorted and filtered using criteria such as Categories (M/M, F/M, F/F, etc.), Fandom Type (Sherlock TV, ACD, Elementary, and crossovers such as Sherlock/Doctor Who, Sherlock/Harry Potter, etc.), Characters, Relationships (Holmes/Watson, Mycroft/Lestrade, Moran/Moriarty, etc.) plus additional tags such as Angst, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Alternate Universe, Post-Reichenbach, etc. I even found a story inspired by Vincent Starrett's 221B entitled "Always 1895" by Aurora_Kira that's Rated: Mature; Relationship: M/M; Fandoms: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms; Relationship: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson; additionally tagged: 'Angsty Goodness but Wait There’s More,' 'John and Sherlock Heart Each Other,' '“Who Never Lived and So Can Never Die,”' 'Old Poetry Kicks Ass.' (Even if you strongly dislike fanfic you have to admit they're extremely meticulous and precise.) Here's a sample from the text of the "Always 1895" fanfic for those new to the genre:

"John adores these moments of quiet, just the two of them. He’ll always love the cases, always love running after Sherlock, fantastic deductions, the danger, the insanity, the hard brilliance that makes up the majority of their life together. Still, it takes the one to make him appreciate the other. It’s the contrast that gives these times of softness their meaning...Sometimes John thinks about what the distant future might hold for them both. He has hopes he hasn’t yet discussed with Sherlock involving country cottages, beehives, the occasional case, maybe even non-homicide-related travel...He snuggles closer to Sherlock, nuzzling gently at the lapel of his dressing gown." ("Always 1895" by Aurora_Kira)

My only real complaint is that the author doesn't mention the color of Holmes' dressing gown which, based on the tone of the piece, I presume to be mouse-colored. To give you some perspective: remember when you thought Philip K. Jones' database of Sherlockian pastiches, clocking in at over 10K entries, was mind-boggling insane? Well, that's not even a drop in the fanfic bucket. (On a personal note, I admit that for the briefest of moments I considered writing a Sherlock/Fringe crossover story but alas I fear the world is not yet prepared - not to mention there already exists, I kid you not, 1,536 entries for Fringe + Sherlock crossover fanfic (!) on AO3.)

[The above image includes a quote by Cumberbatch from an episode of BBC's Top Gear (for non-British readers, Top Gear is a wildly popular talk show about cars and driving which features celebrity guests) in response to a question about 'Johnlock' fanfic to which this Sherlockcares blogger responded with a fanfic piece called "Sherlock Is Lost In Space"- by now you can probably guess where this one is heading.]

Construction Week Online reported that "A $40 million theme park celebrating the life of the famous fictional detective Sherlock Holmes is set to be built in Portsmouth, England, where author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - who created the character in 1887 - used to live." [Editor's note: we covered that here.]

I was rather dubious upon first hearing about the proposed Portsmouth-based Sherlockian amusement park, but recent articles in places as diverse as BBC America, Daily Mail and Fox News all point to the truth of this rather bizarre undertaking. So what can we expect from a Holmes theme park? According to the Portsmouth Cultural Partnership's Steve Pitt: "What we are talking about is a world class, Sherlock Holmes experience." Most of the reports allude to the park containing rides and hi-tech holograms of Holmes, Watson and friends solving crimes and living the Baker Street lifestyle.

If I were called upon to design aspects of the park, you could be sure Sherlock Land (or whatever) would be packed with Canonical references and themes at every turn. One ride would mimic Disneyland's Mad Hatter Tea Party but instead of oversized teacups, riders would sit inside giant spinning deerstalkers. 'Watson's Guide to the Turf' - based on SILV and SHOS - would give riders the chance to sit atop Silver Blaze or Shoscombe Prince (or Desborough, Pugilist, etc.) in a mock race. For those looking for a little more excitement, 'The Reichenbach Fall' would strap riders into a box that ascends to a height of 221 feet on a faux waterfall, pausing just long enough to hear a pre-recording of Moriarty's dialogue from FINA, then plunge straight down into artificial mist. The 'Mind Palace' house of mirrors would be fun for the whole family where as the 'Valley of Fear Coaster' would feature a roller coaster made to look like a harrowing coal mining car run amuck as animatronic Scowrers attempt to behead riders at every turn.

[Fanart from Madwomanlexie featuring Sherlock and John riding a roller coaster; one can hope that Sherlock Land will contain at least one Canonically-inspired roller coaster - perhaps based on the Aurora chase on the Thames in SIGN?]

[I was torn over whether to include an image of these slightly recherché delicates or an image of a painting of Cumberbatch/Sherlock depicted as the Angel Islington from Neil Gaiman's short lived TV series and highly successful novel Neverwhere - which was adapted for radio in 2013 featuring BC as Islington, along with Christopher Lee as The Earl of Earl’s Court, Bernard Cribbins (Yay!) as Old Bailey and Anthony Steward Head (Yay! x 2) as Croup.]

The Beacon Society announced that it is the official charity of 221B Con happening April 4 - 6, 2014 in Atlanta, GA. For those unfamiliar with what exactly the Beacon Society does, it's a non-profit Sherlockian organization that provides grants (2014 application here) as well as rewarding creative/exemplary educational experiences that introduce impressionable young minds to the world and stories of Sherlock Holmes. At 221B Con they'll have "a “Teaching Sherlock” panel with Beacon Award winners Shannon Carlisle (2013) and Tim Greer (2014) along with cartoonist Chris Schweizer and Beacons Marilynne McKay and Marino Alvarez."

If you're lucky enough to be in Atlanta for the conference, make sure to check out one of Beacon's panels and/or speak to Ms. McKay or Prof. Alvarez, particularly if you're interested in education and keeping the memory green. At last count I heard over 3 kazillion Sherlockian enthusiasts were registered for 221B Con, which I hope translates into significant exposure for the Beacon Society who continue to do fantastic work helping to corrupt enlighten the youth of today who will become the Holmesians of tomorrow.

["Light-houses, my boy! Beacons of the future! Capsules with hundreds of bright little seeds in each, out of which will spring the wiser, better England of the future." (NAVA)]

Doyleockian considers the interest Sherlockians have for the home life of Holmes in "A Study In Domesticity", suggesting that due to the relatively sparse, though tantalizing, tidbits of information revealed throughout the Canon, readers' imaginations are given free reign to speculate as much as their heart's desire. Though hard data concerning the domestic lives of Holmes and Watson is scarce, descriptions of the contents of 221B can certainly be found among the 60 stories. It should be no surprise that Sherlockian scholars have made multiple attempts to systematically and exhaustively enumerate the contents of 221B Baker Street, two of the most successful being The Baker Street File (1982/2002) and Clarkson's The Canonical Compendium (1999).

The former is Granada's bible/guide to the appearance and habits of Holmes and Watson whose chapter "Inside 221B" offers 96 separate entries pertaining to the minutia of Holmes' domestic life including: #1054 The Standard was one of the regular papers found in the sitting room (SIGN), #1071 Ice crystals formed thickly on the windows on a frosty day (BLUE), #1104 Holmes had a velvet-lined armchair (SIGN), etc. Clarkson's volume is made up of 444 pages consisting of a Topical Index showing Canonical references that fall into one or more of 80 categories and 144 subcategories, a percentage of which are items relevant to Holmes' domestic life, e.g. Contents of 221B, Holmes Room, Watson's Room (documenting over 180 items in these categories alone) which include everything from the trusty gasogene (surprisingly, mentioned in only two stories) to Holmes' Stradivarius (mentioned in seven stories).

[Sydney Paget's depiction of Holmes and a distraught Grant Munro in YELL. Note the gasogene in the upper, center portion of the illustration sitting on the mantel, presumably next to Holmes' unopened letters held in place by the legendary jackknife. Paget uses the exact location/angle in an illustration for SCAN, except Holmes and Watson appear instead of a client.]

[Watson Is Not An Idiot(2013) is just one of a myriad of new titles - though perhaps the best title of a Sherlockian book ever - from Sherlockian specialists MX Publishing based in the UK but whose releases are available the world over in a variety of languages and formats (paperback, hardcover and e-books). Click here for a few more reviews of new MX titles by Mr Andriacco.]

Studies in Starrett posted a list of essential books written and edited by Vincent Starrett, most of which should reside in every respectable Sherlockian's library. First and foremost is Starrett's brilliant The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1933/1960), a tome unrivaled in historical importance that's just as relevant and fresh today as it was upon it's release in 1933. Wessex Press released a 75-year anniversary facsimile edition, edited by 'Studies in Starrett' proprietor Ray Betzner, which is almost as awesome as owning the first edition (and thanks to a truly generous and remarkable Sherlockian I'm fortunate enough to actually own a first edition) and should be at the top of every burgeoning Sherlockian's want list. Almost as essential is Starrett's edited collection of early Sherlockian papers entitled 221B, Studies in Sherlock Holmes by Various Hands (1940). Collecting some of the greatest minds from the golden age of Sherlockiana, Starrett's collection is still one of the greatest readers in Sherlockian scholarship available - thankfully republished as an affordable paperback by Otto Penzler's Sherlock Holmes Library. Read the rest of Betzner's post for further explorations in Starrettian studies.

The Island Now, a local Long Island news source, ran a lengthy article on Sherlockian Terry Hunt and his recent elevation into the ranks of the Baker Street Irregulars this past January, receiving the titular investiture of "The Something Hunt" (a quote from HOUN). Hunt first encountered the Canon in 5th grade though it wasn't until the last decade that he became involved with the BSI:

"While working as the supervisor of historic sites for the Nassau County Parks Department in 2007, Hunt said he was approached by members of the Baker Street Irregulars who wanted to plan a trip to Christopher Morley Park in Roslyn Estates and see the late author’s writing studio, the Knothole. In exchange for helping the organization plan a trip to the park in 2009, which coincided with the 75th anniversary of its founding, Hunt met with other Sherlockians in the New York area and began attending their dinners."

Terry is also a co-host of the Morley Birthday Lunch happening in Hoboken, NJ on Sunday, May 4, 2014 (cf. 'Events' below for details), an event not to be missed.

What Culturein "10 Moments When Sherlock Was A Complete Jerk" successfully argues, with images and text, that Sherlock's brilliance is matched only by his utter jerktasticness. My favorites include: 10) missing the emotional context behind cases, 9) terrorizing a hallucinating John, 8) humiliating Sally Donovan (and Anderson) in front of her colleagues, 7) denying he has friends to John, 5) belittling Molly Hooper, 3) failing to tell John they weren't going to die in the Tube, 2) using Janine (à la Escott the plumber in MILV) and 1) failing to understand why John might be upset in the immediate aftermath of presenting himself as definitely not-dead. Fans, in order to deal with BBC Sherlock's overwhelming jerkiness, simply turn to the following line for comfort and vindication: Sherlock: "Oh, I may be on the side of the angels, but don't think for one second that I am one of them." "The Reichenbach Fall" (2x03).

[Crossing the pond for a moment, here's Jonny Lee Miller aka Mr Elementary: I have no idea what he's doing in this photo but there's an 87% probability that he's being a huge jerk of some sort.]

My Sherlock Books is a listing of Sherlockian book recommendations curated by the proprietor of Guide To Sherlock Holmes & BBC's Sherlock, a site dedicated to how new BBC Sherlock episodes and characters relate to the original Canon. The book recommendations are divided into Sherlockian tomes "For the General Reader" as well as slightly more advanced reading for those looking to delve deeper into Sherlockian scholarship. Also included is an extremely comprehensive 'Want' list that includes titles that every serious Sherlockian book collector would surely enjoy seeing on their shelves. As a point of reference, the author has included prices he paid for various volumes so that collectors and potential collectors know what they're getting into financially once they allow the Sherlockian collector bug into their brain. (But, you know, I can quit whenever I want...)

[The definitive collection of writings by Christopher Morley The Standard Doyle Company, edited by Morley expert and current editor of the Baker Street Journal Steve Rothman - just one of the many 'must have' volumes featured on this list.]

@JohnHWatsonMD posted this Peanuts strip featuring Charlie Brown reading the "they were the footprints of a gigantic hound" scene from The Hound of the Baskervilles to poor Snoopy before bed. If someone knows of a database of Peanuts cartoons that reference Sherlock Holmes please let me know - I absolutely love coming across Peanuts/Sherlock strips, most of which I've never seen. I'm familiar with "It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown" (watch Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3) where Snoopy dons deerstalker, inverness cape and bubble pipe, in order to help Woodstock find his missing bird's nest, but I know there must be so many more Sherlockian references.

[Igor Petrenko as Sherlock Holmes in the 2013 Russian adaptation of the great detective. Fans of Holmes qua 'profound chemist' will delight in Petrenko's frequent use of 221B's acid-stained, deal-topped table.]

Sherlockian-Sherlock put together a video documenting the most common misconceptions about Sherlock Holmes, based on their previously mentioned article "The Most Common Misconceptions About Sherlock Holmes". Though I don't agree with every item on here, I would suggest this list to be mandatary reading for any mainstream news outlet planning on running a segment about the recent upsurge in Holmes popularity. ("Quick Watson, the remote!")

Seattle Weekly sought out John Longenbaugh in order to get the perspective of a hardcore Sherlockian regarding BBC Sherlock and CBS's Elementary and related popular culture 'boomings'. It's a nice article but make sure to read the comments which had me in stitches. Then check out Brad Keefauver's latest post on Sherlock Peoria which was inspired by the above review of "The One Percent Solution" for the full experience. Mark my words, in a few years when Sherlock Holmes goes back out of style you're going to desperately miss these fun little sparks ignited by mainstream pop culture bumping-up against our little, die-hard Sherlockian world.

Sherlockian Scion and Event Links:

"the first ever official Sherlock convention dedicated to our favourite BBC series, will take place in 2014 over 3 days. The event will be run by Massive Events in association with Hartswood Films and Showmasters Ltd - a combination of the talents of specialist producers in dedicated fan conventions and the hugely experienced team behind the renowned London Film & Comic Con, and the Sherlock production team. In addition, it is intended to take place in Europe and in the USA."

From the press release it even appears that the BBC Sherlock producers are supporting it: "Sherlock's producer Sue Vertue exclusively told [Sherlockology]:

"We're very excited to be announcing our first official Sherlock convention for later in the year, aptly named 'Sherlocked'. Massive Events have been pestering me for ages to get a date for this in the schedule but we wanted to make sure that we had the time and energy to make it a great, high quality and fun event, and now we have! Watch this space...."

So what do you think? Do we really need 'outsiders' putting together a massive Sherlock-themed event when there are already a wide variety of high quality, intellectually stimulating, homegrown Sherlock gatherings such as BSI Weekend, Scintillation of Scions, 221B Con, Wessex Press' From Gillette to Brett IV: Basil, Benedict & Beyond, and numerous other Sherlockian events that have taken place around the world for decades prior to a corporate group of "specialist producers"? On the other hand, maybe a professional group would put together an event entirely different than anything we're used to, mustering resources above and beyond what is available to the average Sherlockian? I'm keeping an open mind and will be curious to see how 'Sherlocked' develops - and I'm equally curious to see how the Sherlockian internet reacts.

[At the end of the day, I think my 'authenticity-o-meter-spider-sense' tends to tingle whenever I see the word "official" prefixing something I care deeply about (ie. "The Official Sherlock X"). Only time will tell in this case.]

BFI Films announced a screening of Billy Wilder's incredibly brilliant The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes on April 9, 2014 at 8:20 PM at BFI Southbank, London. Wilder's take on Holmes, Watson and the entire Baker Street scene is marvelous, but don't take my word for it because Mark Gatiss (Mycroft on Sherlock, writer for Doctor Who) will be on hand to introduce the film and discuss how Wilder's adaptation inspired and influenced his work on BBC Sherlock. If London was only a little closer I would risk life and limb to ensure that I had a seat for what sounds like a magical evening.

The Epilogues of Sherlock Holmes will hold their first gathering of 2014 on March 29 at 6:00 pm in Chatham, NJ at their usual spot, the Quaker (Friends) Meeting House. For those unfamiliar with these beloved Sherlockian meetings hosted by the newly invested Peter McIntyre, BSI ("Arthur Cadogan West") and Bob Katz, BSI ("Dr. Ainstree"), the evening begins with a sumptuous feast (wild caught shrimp, lump crab cakes, salads, refreshments and home made ice cream for only $10 per person) and then eases into an unparalleled discussion, led by Katz, of two seemingly disparate stories from the Canon (this time it's "The Problem of Thor Bridge" and "The Red Circle"). Saving the best for last, Katz typically concludes the discussion by proposing a link - sometimes subtle, other times radical - between the two stories which inevitably sparks further debate and discussion up until the moment when the Quakers kick us out and we all must regrettably return to reality. Make sure to contact Peter McIntyre and RSVP by March 22 so an accurate head count can be determined. For those arriving by train, be sure to let Bob or Peter know so arrangements can be made to ferry you from the station to the meeting. If you've never had the Epilogues experience, I highly recommend making the trip as you'll be hard pressed to find a more intellectually and gastronomically satisfying Sherlockian event on the entire east coast.

[Classic Katz! Bob calls the Canonical shots during the discussion portion of an Epilogues meeting.]

The Grillparzer Club of the Hoboken Free State will hold its Second Annual Christopher Morley Birthday Celebration in the sacred city of Hoboken this year on Sunday, May 4, 2014 at Arthur's Restaurant. "The cost is $50.00 per person, including a house salad; choice of Arthur’s ribeye steak, fish of the day, ribs or surf & turf; soft drinks; and dessert. We will have a private street-level room, and our own bartender. Cash bar." Email the Hunts at Hobokenfreestate [at] mhcable.com for information about payment and reservations and to get on the e-mailing list for the Newsletter of The Grillparzer Club of the Hoboken Free State. On a related note, you can read almost all of Morley's "The Bowling Green" columns from the Saturday Review of Literature online: click to read Morley's SRL columns from January 3, 1925 - February 12, 1955 (along with a variety of other magazines in which Morley published, eg. The Bookman, The Harper's Monthly, The New Republic, etc.).

[Fact: “The Bowling Green” was the title of Christopher Morley’s longstanding column, first published in The New York Evening Post from 1920 until 1923, and then in The Saturday Review of Literature from 1924 until 1938." ]

* If you have a Sherlock Holmes-related event or meeting you would like listed, or any news, gossip or announcements that might interest readers of Always1895.net, please email matt [at] always1895.net.